Mid-Atlantic - Budget travel ideas: SEA-BAL; BAL-PHI; PHI/BAL-SEA

I'm a newbie on this forum, so forgive my general questions.

We are definitely on a tight budget. I'm just interested to hear if anyone has some good ideas I haven't thought of.

I'm heading back to Baltimore from Seattle with my wife the first week of August (we have not bought anything yet). We'd like to stay in Baltimore for 3-4 days (ideally in an inexpensive hotel -- any feedback?). Then we'll travel to Philadelphia where we will stay with our friend for a few days (any ideas on the best way to get from Baltimore to Philly on the cheap? We are planning on renting a car, but if we can avoid we will...)

Our plan was to stay in Philadelphia, then come back to Baltimore just before we depart again for Seattle by mid-August. However, it would be nice to leave from Philly to avoid having to backtrack.

Cheap is good.

Any suggestions are welcome. Cheers...

I'm a newbie on this forum, so forgive my general questions.

We are definitely on a tight budget. I'm just interested to hear if anyone has some good ideas I haven't thought of.

I'm heading back to Baltimore from Seattle with my wife the first week of August (we have not bought anything yet). We'd like to stay in Baltimore for 3-4 days (ideally in an inexpensive hotel -- any feedback?). Then we'll travel to Philadelphia where we will stay with our friend for a few days (any ideas on the best way to get from Baltimore to Philly on the cheap? We are planning on renting a car, but if we can avoid we will...)

Our plan was to stay in Philadelphia, then come back to Baltimore just before we depart again for Seattle by mid-August. However, it would be nice to leave from Philly to avoid having to backtrack.

Cheap is good.

Any suggestions are welcome. Cheers...

First off, welcome to Flyertalk! ^
Second, I assume you are talking about BWI airport. BAL is the abbreviation for a small airport in Turkey: http://www.flightstats.com/go/Airport/airportDetails.do?airportCode=BAL :)

Since there are two of you, renting a car may be the best way to get to Philly from Baltimore. It would be about a 2 to 2.5 hour drive depending on traffic. You could also take Amtrak from their BWI station (a short bus ride from the airport) or from the downtown Baltimore station. A one way coach ticket on Amtrak to Philly for the first week of August will be $31.00 per person.

There is also the Megabus, http://us.megabus.com/ that goes from Baltimore (not the airport) to Philadelphia. For that week, their super cheap rates are still available, from $1.00 to $5.00 per person, so if you staying in the Baltimore area, that might be doable, but would be a pain to connect directly from the airport.

Happy travels and enjoy Philly; it's a great city.

Hi rittenhousesq-
thank you for the info. Very helpful -- esp about Megabus. Great to know. Cheers!

Second, I assume you are talking about BWI airport. BAL is the abbreviation for a small airport in Turkey: http://www.flightstats.com/go/Airport/airportDetails.do?airportCode=BAL :)Just for fun, PHI is an airport in Brazil. ;)

Anyway, I would second the recommendation for Megabus. That, and Bolt Bus, seem to be getting more and more interest here on FT.

Just for fun, PHI is an airport in Brazil. ;)


LOL, I missed that one. Now there is a trip that would be a challenge to book: SEA-BAL-PHI :D